Expert Witness ICWA Case Out of Alaska

Here.

 
Applying the correct meaning of the phrase “professional person having substantial education in the area of his or her specialty,” we hold that Cosolito and Kirchoff should have been qualified as experts under the third BIA guideline. As social workers, both were “professional persons.” Both had “substantial education in the area of [her] specialty”: master’s degrees in social work, internships in relevant subject areas as required for their degrees, agency training, and continuing professional education. The experience of both witnesses further demonstrated the required “expertise beyond the normal social worker qualifications.” Cosolito described her work as an OCS supervisor overseeing hundreds of cases, identifying safety threats, and having ultimate responsibility for custody decisions; as an OCS line worker assessing reports of harm; and as a school administrator and social worker in Arizona working with the diverse behavioral and education needs of students and their families. Her testimony demonstrated regular and in-depth exposure to the very types of family and behavioral issues that were central to Candace’s case, including the possibility that Candace would be assaulted again, be re-traumatized, and engage in more self-destructive behavior.

Kirchoff appeared even more amply qualified to testify about the risks of serious emotional or physical harm if Candace were returned to her home. Kirchoff had a lengthy work history as a mental health clinician, working with children with emotional and behavioral problems in a variety of institutional and agency settings, as well as a private practice of custody investigations and adoption home-studies. As Candace’s own clinician, treating her in both individual and group therapy, Kirchoff was uniquely qualified to testify with authority about Candace’s susceptibility to emotional harm.